A new year, a new look and a new outlook

As Americans, we enter 2009 riding a tidal wave of crisis: a plummeting economy, multiple wars and a nation torn apart by bitter partisanship.

Yet we ride that wave on a surfboard of hope driven by a new President, a promise of change and a commitment to approach our many problems by building coalitions and crossing the angry battle lines of partisanship.

It’s no longer a question of "can we do it?" It becomes a mandate of "we must do it."

Americans cannot, and must not, rely on the bitter, partisan crutches of the past. The many challenges facing this nation cannot be overcome by Democrats or Republicans. We must face them as Americans: United in purpose, driven by faith and marching in unison.

Capitol Hill Blue enters the new year with a new look, a redesign that we hope signals more than cosmetic change. We approach the new year with a renewed commitment to honest, straightforward reporting of the news on issues that affect this nation and us — its people. We have tried to do so in the past but we have not always delivered on the promise. Our human failings have led to monumental mistakes, my vanity as the owner and publisher of this web site has led to lapses in judgment. I have been divisive when unity was needed, speculative when documented fact was necessary and opinionated when objectivity was demanded.

Hopefully, like any human with all-too-human failings, I have learned from past mistakes. Hopefully, the promises I make to our readers today will stand the test of time.

As the founder, owner, publisher and editor of this publication, I make these commitments to you, our readers:

Capitol Hill Blue will report the news in a straightforward, objective manner. We will use proven, reliable sources for our news. This includes wire services like the Associated Press, Reuters and AFP. The authors of articles from those sources will be identified unless the wire service does not include a byline. In such cases, the byline will state the source of the article;

When a news summary is written based on information from other news sources, the author of that summary will be included as a byline and the sources of all such information will be identified and linked;

When I write a news article, the sources for information in that article will be identified by name and organization. I wil not accept information from unknown sources via email or any other means of communication. I will not accept information gathered by a researcher or assistant unless I have verified that information directly with the source. I have been burned in the past by allowing others to gather information for me.

Our columnists — Hal Brown, Rob Kezelis, Phil Hoskins and myself — are free to express their opinions in their columns which appear in the left-hand sidebar of the home page. The opinions of columnists are their own and should be considered as such.

Our reader/bloggers are also free to express their opinions in the blogs but it should be remembered that bloggers can, and often do, shoot from the lip. Capitol Hill Blue does not necessarily endorse, support or stand behind information or opinions offered by our reader/bloggers.